The Apprentice
by aspentigress
Summary: Peter Jones becomes the next Robin under Batman and struggles as he finds his place in Gotham, the Bat-family, and what being a hero really means. Please read! way better than the summary
THE APPRENTICE

It all started on that fateful night.

I was walking down State Street with my hands in my pockets looking down at the asphalt. I looked like a normal teenager, jet black hair, pacific blue eyes, average height, average build, jeans, t-shirt and hoodie.

But I was nowhere NEAR normal.

I guess I should introduce myself. Hi, I'm Peter Jones.

I live here in Gotham city. Up until a few days ago, I lived in an apartment with my parents. My mom worked part-time in a diner and my father was a detective. He used to work with Harvey Dent, but after Dent's death he worked alone.

Reason for past-tense, Howard Jones made enemies.

After locking up a notorious gangster nicknamed Mayhem, my dad angered his accomplices.

All the detectives and their families were gathered in a formal building for a party. It was all going great until we heard the screaming. A fire had started.

I was practically pushed all the way out of the building by the panicked crowd.

I looked back when I finally broke away. The entire building was engulfed in flames. I saw my father run towards me. "Are you alright?" he asked.

I nodded. "Where's mom?" I said.

I heard a woman's scream come from the building. There were still people trapped in there. My mother was still in there.

My dad started running bravely back towards the flaming entrance. "Dad, no!" I grabbed his jacket sleeve.

Dad smiled comfortingly and grabbed my shoulders. "It'll be alright. I'll be right back." He told me. He sounded so sure. I could only watch him run as I stood anxiously.

 _Please be ok, please be ok._

The building exploded in a fiery blast. I was knocked backward by the force of it. My ears were ringing, and my skin stung from the heat. I looked up to see it had collapsed.

" _NOOOOO!"_ I screamed.

They were gone. They were dead.

I was told later at the police station that the explosion had been planned. There had been a note next to the detonation that had said, _courtesy of Mayhem._

I walked home after the funeral by myself and put on some more casual clothes. I looked at all the trophies and medals that my dad had helped me train for. I was a star athlete at my school.

It just didn't feel right without them, so I went for a walk.

It was nighttime. I could hear sirens in the distance. I was so preoccupied in my thoughts that I didn't see the hand coming until it was too late.

Someone pulled me into an alley and shoved me hard to the ground. I looked up, slightly stunned by the fall. Three muggers. This was bad news.

I scrambled to my feet and put my hands up, ready to fight, even though I was cornered against a wall and outnumbered. "Got any money, punk?" one asked.

"No, I don't have anything." I insisted.

"Yeah, right." He snickered. The robber shoved me against the brick and tried to nail me in the face. I ducked and punched his gut swiftly. He doubled over in pain as the two other thugs rushed forward.

I couldn't fight them all at once.

One of them hit me in the cheek, another in the lip. I got swept to the ground and they began beating me ruthlessly.

I was going to pass out from pain. But just as the ring-leader raised his foot to smash my face, I saw someone drop down from the roof of the building next us. Someone wearing a black mask and cape.

 _Batman_

The Caped Crusader swiftly took out the robbers, tasing one of them. Batman watched the other two run before drooping down next to me.

I blacked out as Batman said, "You ok, kid?"

 **CHAPTER 2**

I woke up in a really comfortable bed. What scared me though, was the fact that the pants I was wearing weren't mine. I sat up and looked around. I was in a fancy looking bedroom.

I got out of bed and looked out the window. I saw a really huge lawn space. Well, okay, _field_ better covers it.

I jumped slightly when I heard a knock at the door. "Uh, come in." It came out sounding like a question. A man in his late fifties, wearing a suit came in holding a tray of food.

"Good morning." He said pleasantly. The man set the tray down on the bed. I eyed it warily. I was starving, but I didn't know where in the heck I was.

I walked slowly towards the breakfast and took a piece of toast; but didn't bite it. "Would it comfort you to know that I haven't poisoned your food?" the man asked.

I answered by practically inhaling the toast. It tasted wonderful.

"Allow me to introduce myself, I am Alfred Pennyworth." The man said. "Peter. Peter Jones." I said after taking a swallow of milk. "Where am I?"

"I think that question would be better answered by the master." Alfred said.

He opened the door and escorted me down a really nice hallway. "Who am I supposed to be seeing?" I asked.

"Me."

I almost peed my pants. Which would not have been nice for the actual owner of them.

I whirled around and saw Batman standing in front of me. "Don't—do that!" I panted. Then I remembered that he was the one who had saved my life.

"Oh, thanks. About last night." I said.

"We should probably get you home. Your parents must be worried sick." Batman said sternly. My heart fell. I looked down at the ground. "My parents are dead. They were killed in the explosion a few days ago." I said softly.

Alfred and Batman exchanged looks. "May I speak with you for a moment?" he asked Batman. They walked a small ways down the hall and had what sounded like a quiet, heated discussion. Alfred folded his arms and Batman nodded.

The Dark Knight walked towards me and said. "Peter, how would you like to stay here and train as my next partner? I would have the paperwork taken care of today and you could live here." Batman said.

I could barely believe my ears. "Become Robin?" I breathed. Batman nodded. I smiled broadly and nodded. Batman walked away as Alfred put his hand on my shoulder.

"Welcome to the Wayne Mansion, Master Peter."

Six months later, I was admiring myself in a brand-new, red and black (with a little bit of yellow) Robin suit. I had black gloves and boots, a utility belt, and a black cape lined with yellow and fitted with a hood.

I looked at my chest. On my left where a breast pocket would normally be, was a symbolic R. I put on the black mask and came out to show Bruce.

He smiled slightly.

"How do I look?" I asked.

"Good."

"Good? That's it? I feel awesome! I'm actually the Boy Wonder!" but I knew Bruce meant well. He's just mellower than most people.

We went out in the Bat-mobile to patrol the North side of the city.

All was fine until we found robbers trying to break into a high-tech warehouse. "If they stole even one of those weapons it could end badly." Batman said to me. He told me the plan to stop the robbery.

I nodded excitedly. I had been waiting for so long to do this.

Batman disappeared and I walked in front of the alley. "Hey, guys." I said brightly. Every last robber jumped. I counted four assault rifles aimed at me.

"Who are you? A cop?" one demanded.

I wanted face palm. "Do I seriously look like a cop? In this outfit?" I said. The gunmen looked at each other warily. It's not every day you see a kid in a red and black suit talking to you in the midst of a robbery.

I saw a feint flash of movement. It was Batman's signal. Two thugs screamed as they were whipped out of sight by a seemingly invisible force.

Three of the gunmen started spraying bullets.

"It's the Batman!" one screamed hysterically. He tried to run past me and I tripped him by throwing a weighted rope. I ran into the fray and disarmed the thieves. Batman punched one goon in the face and knocked out another with a precise kick.

It was over in very little time. We had them all tied up, handcuffed to one another. Batman started to interrogate the one who hadn't been knocked out or was babbling too much to get anything sensible out.

"Talk." Batman ordered.

"It was just a heist, it was our idea." He said.

Liar.

Batman picked him up by his collar and brought him real close to his face. "Do you know what you were stealing?" he said in a deadly calm voice. That's what makes it so scary, because it's not like a _forced_ calm; you can see that he really is calm and collected, but if you cross him, he'll unleash hell on you.

The robber swallowed nervously and shook his head with wide eyes. "Robin, hand me that case." Batman said as he dropped the thief.

I handed him a small silver case that was air-locked. Batman opened it and showed the thug three vials of deep blue liquid. "This is Nitro-drake. An ultra-rare toxin. No petty thievery would include this. Now tell. _The. Truth!"_ Batman demanded.

"Ok, ok! All I know is that we were supposed to get these cases…and that Mayhem escaped Arkham Asylum."

 **CHAPTER 3**

I was silent the whole drive home. "Peter." Bruce said.

I looked away. My parent's murderer was free. I couldn't let that slide.

When we got back to the Batcave I stormed out of the Bat-mobile. " _Peter."_ He said more severely.

"What?" I snapped as I turned around. Batman looked strained. He looked me over for a moment. "Whatever you're going to say, just say it. I need to get to training." I said impatiently.

Batman took a deep breath. "How about we skip training today? Let's have a movie morning."

Nothing fixes a troubled mind like a Star Wars marathon. We watched the original trilogy in our uniforms while eating pop-corn.

Bruce got up when the movie was over. "I've got to get to work. I'm still a CEO aren't I?" he said.

I sat on the couch by myself. While Bruce was gone at work…what was to stop me from looking for Mayhem?

I quietly exited the front door (cuz I'm polite like that) and was about to set out when I heard, "Going somewhere?"

I thought I was having a heart-attack. "Stop doing that!" I told Bruce angrily. He looked at me severely. "I was goin


End file.
